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The Day Robert Johnson Died James Campion American Lore & the Curse of Virtuosity Why Warren Zevon belongs in the R&R HOF James Campion 3.13.25 Warren Zevon was one cool guy, whose music and humor and pathos made life better .. Top Ten Most Misunderstood Songs Ever - James Campion 4.1.25 The text has disappeared under the interpretation. - Friedrich Nietzsche 'Beyond Good and Evil' Top Ten Favorite SNL Music Performances James Campion My Musical Education via Saturday Night Live The Timeless & Terrifying Majesty of "Nessum Dorma" James Campion 2.13.25 The story of Tarandot, the libretto written by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni, takes place in China, and concerns a suitor for the Princess Tarandot The Missed Opportunity of Beatles '64 James Campion reviews Martin Scorsese take on the Beatles First American Tour of the USA 1.16.25 The Wild Robot Director Chris Sanders Voices of Lupita Nyong’o Pedro Pascal, Kit Conner, + Sam North review 11.1.24 Raising a kid is easy right? But what if it isn't in your programming? Drive Away Dolls Starring Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein Sam North review 3.20.24 Road Movie on Diversion Babylon (2022) Directed by Damien Chazelle Starring Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Diego Calva, Tobey Maguire, Jovan Adepo & many more … Sam North review Chaos with a great soundtrack Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Director: Sam Raimi May 2022 Cast: Xochitl Gomez, Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams A silly adventure fantasy that doesn't break new ground Free Guy 8.17.21 Starring Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Directed by Shawn Levy At last a big screen experience and a real fun movie. Sweet Tooth Created by Jim Mickle, Beth Schwartz Starring:  Christian Convery, Nonso Anozie,  Stefania LaVie Owen + The best apocalypse show on Netflix 2021/2023 Nomadland Directed by Chloé Zhao Starring Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May Sam North review 5.25.21 Beautiful, sad insight into real America Anti-Life (Breach) Directed by John Suits and features Cody Kearsley and Bruce Willis it should come with a viewer warning for sheer ineptness Our Monster Fixation James Campion 4.10.21 What Godzilla vs. Kong Tells Us About Our Times - When King Kong and Godzilla face off, all sins are forgiven. The Art of Finding Book Titles Sam Hawksmoor 4.1.21 "What the hell is your novel about," she asked. "Erm .... well it's a long story.." THE GHOSTS OF HATE & FREEDOM In Praise of Jojo Rabbit – The Best Film I Have Seen in a Decade - James Campion We have to dance to show God we are grateful for being alive TERMINATOR: Dark Fate Directed by Tim Miller (Deadpool) A return to form in the latest Armageddon thrill Ad Astra Directed by James Gray Starring Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Neggar, Sam Hawksmoor review Thoughtful psychological space drama well worth seeing Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Written & Directed by Quentin Tarantino Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Al Pacino, Dakota Fanning Nostalgic and affectionate focus on the lives of actors in 1969 Vice Directed by Adam McKay Starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Steve Carroll, Sam Rockwell … Sam Hawksmoor review Resurrecting Lenny James Campion In Praise of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel & The Spirit of the Great Lenny Bruce - From the first, in the hands of Kirby, a trained and celebrated Canadian actor, Bruce comes alive ... Salinger (The Cat) 2006-2018 James Campion ...even on the last day I saw him, he found a moment to walk his way onto my chest and give me that special Salinger kiss. It was cool . Isle of Dogs Written and Directed by Wes Anderson Sam North review witty, charming, a grand visual treat Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Director: Martin McDonagh Starring Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Peter Dinklage, Abbie Cornish ... Jumanji: Lights up Cinemas across the Nation Nwaorgu Faustinus Dwayne Johnson has expressed profound excitement that the new Jumanji movie turns things around as its characters are made to go to the jungle Ghost in the Shell Director: Rupert Sanders Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano George Wolstenholme review Scarlett Johansen stars in the 2017 live-action adaptation of the 1995 anime film ‘Ghost in the Shell’. Beauty & the Beast starring Emma Watson, Dan Stevens & Luke Evans Helen Reynolds review Emma Watson resourceful, fearless, emotional and ultimately very likeable for a new generation of girls to look up to. Logan Helen Reynolds review Directed by James Mangold What if Superman turned super-old? That’s the kind of question Logan makes you wonder ... LA LA LAND starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone Director Damien Chazelle (Winner 6 Oscars) Helen Reynolds review Hollywood has fallen in love again. Five years on from The Artist, a beautiful nostalgic nod to cinema history, here we are again in the land of bygone times. The Great Wall starring Matt Damon & Tian Jing Director Zhang Yimou Helen Reynolds review For a movie that has a monster acting as a metaphor for greed, it’s surprising just how engaging it is to watch ... Lion Directed by Garth Davis with Dev Patel, Rooney Mara & Nicole Kidman Helen Reynolds Review Lion is transnational cinema at its rawest. It would be easy to write the movie off as overly sentimental, but there's a complicated narrative at its heart. SLOW WEST review Director: John Maclean Stars: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Michael Fassbender, Ben Mendelsohn Charlotte March review Somehow found myself charmed by Michael Fassbender in a stetson the other day in Slow West: easily the best film I’ve seen all year ... Dr Strange Directed by Scott Derrickson, starring Benedict Cumberbatch Dr Strange a witty super-hero movie that is a definite cut above the rest. Everybody Wants Some!! Director and Writer: Richard Linklater Starring Blake Jenner, Juston Street, Wyatt Russell, Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell ... Sam Hawksmoor review A belated companion piece to Dazed & Confused by Richard Linklater - we are now in 1980 in the first days before College classes begin at a Texas University. Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Rolling Stones James Campion In Praise of The Sun and the Moon and The Rolling Stones & A Candid Discussion with Author, Rich Cohen There must be hundreds of books written about the Rolling Stones... Rich Cohen has managed to write a spectacular one.Bruno Dan Schneider Watching Sacha Baron Cohen’s 2009 comedy, Bruno, released after his breakthrough 2006 hit, Borat, is a little bit anticlimactic. Bruno is funny, but, in almost every way, and despite featuring a different character, it is an inferior film. Chappie Director: Neill Blomkamp (District 9) Stars: Sharlto Copley, Dev Patel, Hugh Jackman Simply put it’s 'Five Alive' meets 'Robocop' meets Gangster Hip-Hop all set in a bleak future JoBurg - which makes a nice change from the streets of LA. The Kingsman: The Secret Service Directed by Mathew Vaughn Like a throwback to the days of Roger Moore as James Bond, The Kingsman is a entertaining diversion with some flair. Mise En Dread James Campion In Praise of 'Cabaret' - wonderfully conflated hyper-sense of mystery and dread. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One Directed by Francis Lawrence Sam North review Dark, oppressive, moody – Mockingjay Part One reflects our times in more ways than one. Ten Tiny Love Stories Dan Schneider review a film that should be seen, and in its best scenarios, embraced Edge of Tomorrow Sam North review Fast paced - adrenaline packed sci-fi with best performance from Tom Cruise in years Divergent Director: Neil Burger Divergent is actually better than the book. It takes its time to develop the characters and its all the better for that. How I Accidentally Started The Sixties by Howard Bloom Dan Schneider review If one has ever read the poetry of Eugene O’Neill or Tennessee Williams then one is familiar with writers who are good in one form of writing, but mediocre, bad in another Kiss Me Deadly Dean Borok review It’s always more agreeable to see a private dick getting his brains stomped out by a gang of fashionably accessorized thugs sporting boxy, wide-shouldered suits, ties, fedora hats Catching Fire: Hunger Games -Part Two Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Donald Sutherland, Sam North review The second one is always a hard task.  Do you remind everyone about what happened in the first or just get into it?  If you didn’t see part one – well why the hell not? Elysium Director & Writer: Neill Blomkamp Sam Hawksmoor review Being a big fan of District 9 I approached Elysium with enthusiasm and certainly the look and feel of the movie is ambitious. LA in 2154 is every bit as depressing as one would suspect it will be 56 Up Dan Schneider Watching Michael Apted’s latest installment in the great The Up Series- whose films he’s all directed, save the first, helmed by Paul Almond, 56 Up, sees a film that is an exercise in expectation and disappointment Osaka Elegy - Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi Dan Schneider Osaka Elegy (Naniwa Erejii) is an early black and white film from the canon of Kenji Mizoguchi, one of the Big Three Film Masters from Japan, along with Yasujiro Ozu and Akira Kurosawa In The Mood For Love Dan Schneider Watching Wong Kar Wai's In the Mood for Love, was an interesting experience: the 99 minute long film is clearly a superior work of art and cinema Dynarama:RIP Ray Harryhausen John M. Edwards Jason and the Argonauts is the greatest movie ever made! Oblivion Director: Joseph Kosinski Sam Hawksmoor a thinking persons sci-fi movie, stylish, beautiful to look at channeling Tarkovski Being There DVD review Directed by Hal Ashby Dan Schneider review Hal Ashby made a series of quirky films in the 1970s that were highly regarded, then succumbed to a drug addiction and died before the 1980s were through. The most famous of these were Harold And Maude, Shampoo, Coming Home, and Being There. The Blackboard Jungle Dan Schneider review Any film that stars Sidney Poitier is going to rise and fall on the basis of his presence. He is one of those classic actors, like a Jimmy Cagney, Spencer Tracy, or John Wayne, that simply captures the attention of an audience, for good or ill Rise of the Guardians Holly Trinder review Directed by: Peter Ramsey Starring: Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Isla Fisher A dark shadow is consuming the globe, turning dreams to nightmares, and belief to fear Wreck-it Ralph Directed by: Rich Moor Holly Trinder review So we're entering the digital matrix that is the world inside the arcade. How many of us (us older kids anyway) spent our money senselessly but deservedly at the American style arcades playing the old classics? Lincoln Directed by Steven Spielberg Screenplay Tony Kushner Marcel D'Agneau review About a quarter way in in this bio-pic of President Lincoln’s last few weeks of life I kept wishing I was watching John Adams ... Southern Comfort Interrupted James Campion In Praise of a New Revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof starring Scarlett Johannson Gangster Squad Director: Ruben Fleischer Sam North review Gangster Squad a movie for people who care nothing for good cinema or history. Looper Directed by Rian Johnson Starring Joe Gordon Levitt and Bruce Willis Terrific scifi thriller that delivers one hell of a punch On Speculative Fiction Sam Hawksmoor Why is it so hard to get the future right? I grew up on Philip K Dick and his fantasies about global nuclear war, robots that were indistinguishable from people and a world engulfed by consumerism. The Reluctant Communist by Charles Robert Jenkins Leroy B. Vaughn review Charles Jenkins was an old worn out man in his late sixties, living on an island off the coast of Japan at the time this book was written. The Quest - Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World by Daniel Yergin Steve Wheeler review A Little Light at the End of the Tunnel Longtitude by Dava Sobel John M. Edwards review Throughout the ages, explorers from Vasco de Gama to Balboa struggled with the “longitude problem.” Without an accurate method of calculating the longitude, navigators were literally lost at sea. Review of eFiction Magazine - India Michelle D'costa Most of us need a reason to do something, a muse. For writers it has been eFiction India. Before this multi-faceted journal came into their lives their voice had been stifled. Indian Ink by Tom Stoppard Directed by Carey Perloff The Laura Pels Theater NY Dean Borok review Of all the fascinating cultures of the world, I give the edge to India. They know how to live, especially the ones with money. Not like the movies: The Cape Corps (1940-1946) and the legacy of apartheid- Abigail George They have seen combat, they have seen death, they have seen Kenya, and these “agents of terror” serve and protect their country selflessly and will define future generations to come. ___________________________________________ Review Archive 2009-2012 Older Review Pages 2000-2008 Disclaimer: Opinions expressed herein are wholly reflective of the writers and contributors to hackwriters. All work is copyright of the writers & hackwriters.com. Hackwriters is a non-profit , non-paying journal but welcomes contributions from writers. We reserve the right to publish and edit material in accordance with our editorial policy- see submissions

Movie: FLOW The most exquisite movie I've ever seen NEXUS By Yuval Noah Harari Fern Press - £28 From clay tablets to AI - how stories have shaped human history 9.16.24 Navola by Paolo Bacigalupi ISBN: 9-781035-908639 Head of Zeus – August 2024 Sam Hawkmoor review An intriqued filled coming of age story in a mythical Italy The Restoration of Ami Bonnie Devet Review 7.1.24 Emotional USA Road Trip Fiction A Magic Steeped in Poison By Judy I. Lin 9.1.24 ISBN: 978-1-803362182  Sam Hawksmoor review Elegant treacherous adventure The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo Sam Hawksmoor review Adult historical fiction from the magical world of Bardugo Moscow X by David McCloskey Marcel D'Agneau review 3.7.24 A risky CIA op in St Petersburg - who is being taken for a ride? City of Lost Chances by Adrian Tchaikovsky Sam Hawksmoor review A cast of thousands all doomed to fail The Future by Naomi Alderman 4th Estate Pub: 7 November UK ISBN: 978-0-00-864706-3 Sam Hawksmoor It’s a survival story with a great plot and a wonderful twist with main characters who are very thinly disguised versions of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Larry Page Christian Metaphysics and Neoplatonism by Albert Camus Charlie Dickinson review 10.09.23 an authoritative first work for a future Nobel Laureate The Surviving Sky by Kritika H. Rao published June 2023 Sam Hawksmoor review 1.7.23 enigmatic story of marriage and a city's survival The Future of Geography by Tim Marshall How Power & Politics in Space will change our world. Sam North review 1.7.23 Astropolitics: a powerful examination of humanities rather fragile future The Earth Transformed by Peter Francopan (An Untold Story) ISBN: 978-1-5266-2256-3 Bloomsbury - Hardback 2023 Sam Hawksmoor review An essential perspective on the last 5000 years of history and how climate has affected every single major event .. Lonely Castle in the Mirror Mizuki Tsujhmura ISBN: 978-1-5291-7666-7 Penguin Books Sam Hawksmoor review A haunting story of longing and fear The High House by Jessie Greengrass Swift Press Sam Hawksmoor review The Climate is not our friend The Passenger by Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz ISBN: 978-1-78227-540-4 Pushkin Press 2021 Sam Hawksmoor review 5.18.22 The Man who left it too late to flee... First Person Singular by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 292-8-377-08259-8 Vintage Sam North review 5.18.22 A satisfying journey to another world The Dark Flood by Deon Meyer ASIN: BO9DNL5XXL Hodder & Stoughton (April 2022) Sam Hawksmoor review 5.1.22 Fast pacy crime thriller set in the Cape Kerouac Century James Campion 3.12.22 A Saint Jack Commemorative “I saw that my life was a vast glowing empty page and I could do anything I wanted.” - Jack Kerouac The Vonnegut Cathasis & The Pain of War James Campion 2.5.22 In Praise of The Writer's Crusade: Kurt Vonnegut and the Many Lives of Slaughterhouse-Five and a Discussion with its Author, Tom Roston The Sweet & Sour Music of Hunter S. Thompson James Campion In Praise of High White Notes – The Rise and Fall of Gonzo Journalismand a Discussion with its Author, David S. Willis An Imperfect Blessing by Nadia Davids Publisher: Umuzi A very visual, completely engaging portrait of a Muslim family in Cape Town in the year of transition 1993 Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels Bloomsbury Moving WW2 survival story This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends by Nicole Perlroth. Charlie Dickinson review Bloomsbury Publishing, New York, Pub: 2.19. 2021. Cyberwar- a chilling vison of our very near future Abe: Abraham Lincoln in His Times by David S. Reynolds. Penguin Press, New York, 2020. Charlie Dickison review An ambitious book, Abe: Abraham Lincoln in His Times is a cultural biography delivering an unforgettable portrait of our greatest president against a painstakingly evoked American landscape of the 1800s. King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo Sam Hawksmoor review Brilliant new adventure in the Grishaverse Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo Sam Hawksmoor review Stunning conclusion to the King of Scars La Peste (The Plague) by Albert Camus, Charlie Dickinson The scourge of millennia, the bubonic plague has come to Oran. Life of Jesus by Ernst Renan Charlie Dickinson review What a delightful surprise. Ernest Renan, French, has written a sincere biography, based on the four Gospels and Flavius Josephus et. al. With utmost care he strives to uncover truth and render a nuanced life. "The Machine Stops" by E. M. Forster Charlie Dickinson "The Machine Stops," a short story by E. M. Forster (1909) is an imaginative leap 100 years into a future that bears an uncanny resemblance to the Information Age so preoccupying us now. The Siberian Dilemma By Martin Cruz Smith Pub: Simon & Schuster 2019 Sam North review This is fast paced stuff and there are bears (if you are vegan you might just get a bit squeamish). Fear Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward Thorndike Press 2018 Stevellie Wheeler review We’re in crazytown. I don’t even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I’ve ever had.” The Book of Dust Vol.2: The Secret Commonwealth By Philip Pullman David Fickling Books Hardcover: ISBN: 978-0- 241-37333-0 Sam Hawksmoor review An extraordinary tale of sadness and heroics and uniquely in fiction, the main protagonist being a pine-marten desperate to restore happiness and imagination to his mistress. The Wall by John Lanchester ISBN: 978-0571298709 F&F publishers  2019 Sam Hawksmoor review The Defenders are the only ones keeping the UK safe from outsiders who might steal their jobs or food or worse – breed. Finding Relly by Rosemary Schonfeld A Review by Rosemary North '...essential reading for all university students, and for anyone who tries to deny the truth of the Holocaust...' The Electric State by Simon Stalenhag Simon & Schuster UK 2018 ISBN: 978-1-4711-7608-1 Sam Hawksmoor review Eeirie, disturbing and brilliant graphic novel Proof of Collusion: How Trump Betrayed America by Seth Abramson Pub: Simon and Schuster UK 2019 Stevellie Wheeler review The book states that Russia aided and cultivated Trump for a long time (probably 2011–2016) before he ran for President. It was Russia and Trump who combined to steal the American election for the GOP ... Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami ISBN13: 9780525520047 Sam North review Self-Doubt and Obesssion rules J&K 4Ever by Sam Hawksmoor Allen P Cook review a heart-warming story which testifies to the ultimate strength of youth On Writing a YA novel Sam Hawksmoor If someone came up to you and said they were from a parallel city to the one you were living in - but with a different name and history - a country that was at war with the French you'd back away right?  Find an excuse and run.  Fear (Trump in the White House) by Bob Woodward Sam North review Insightful and worrying chronicle of daily life in the Trump White House by American's best known forensic journalist. The Road to Unfreedom by Timothy Snyde The role of Russia now is to create anarchy, lawlessness, create doubt where there is none, and undermine credibility How Democracies Die By Steven Levitsky & Daniel Ziblatt Stevellie Wheeler review Can the US, our big brother, really be sliding from democracy to authoritarianism to dictatorship? Fire and Fury Inside the White House by Michael Wolff Sam North review you will reel with horror at the paucity of intelligence in American Governance and if you ever thought ‘The Donald’ or Steve Bannon deserved any sympathy – think again. This is all very frightening stuff. Girl with Cat (Blue) by Sam Hawksmoor Allen Cook review Exciting epic fantasy novel ... It packs a punch that is hard to deflect. A Skinfull of Shadows by Frances Hardinge Macmillan Childrens Books ...a wonderful fantasy about a girl, a bear, ghosts and the English Civil War Devil’s Bargain Steve Bannon, Donald Trump and the Storming of the Presidency by Joshua Green Penguin Press, New York 2017 Steve Wheeler review 'Truth and veracity weren’t his top priority…' Shadow Trails Adventures in Dark Tourism by Tom Coote Publisher: Wicked World (Hardback) Sam North review Witty, well observed, nicely photographed with striking images these are adventures in hell and I for one am happy that Tom Coote is willing to go there on our behalf so we don’t have to. Vagabond’s House by Don Blanding Dodd, Mead & Company, 1966 Leroy B. Vaughn review The 1920’s was a time when a writer could actually make a living, writing poems for a daily newspaper. Parliament of Rooks by Karen Perkins (Lionheart Publishing -2017) Marwan Asmar Haworth is haunted, the place is beset by spirits, hallowing over every house so watch out! 2020 World of War Paul Cornish & Kingsley Donaldson Published by Hodder and Stoughton - July 2017 ISBN: 978-1-473-64032-0 Sam Hawksmoor 'Essential reading for troubled times' Three Hours Past Midnight by Tony Knighton Sam North review 'Fast paced crime thriller that gives Jack Reacher a run for his money... The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead Published by Fleet 2017 Winner of the Pulizer Prize for Fiction 2017 Cora’s journey will stay with you for a very long time, the stains of the past can never be washed away.  Read this brilliant work and weep ... North and Central by Bob Hartley Literary Fiction ISBN: 978-0-9860922-8-2 Publisher: Tortoise Books Chicago, IL '70's Chicago brought to life with a vivid portrait of a working-class bar culture slowly losing it's grip on reality. The Bickford Fuse by Andrey Kurkov Maclehose Press, London, 2016, 350 pp. Charlie Dickinson book review The latest work by Andrey Kurkov to be translated into English, The Bickford Fuse, just might be his magnum opus. Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind The Rise of the Radical Right by Jane Mayer It is scary and hard to believe the measures which the Koch brothers take in order to gain political power in an attempt to avoid regulation and taxation The Fourth Political Theory by Alexander Dugin Steve Nolten A book that presents itself as a road map of where the world might go after the defeat of the current liberal globalist world order ... Crime Fiction Sam Hawksmoor We read crime for the insights into the human condition, taut pithy descriptions of characters as they investigate each one, follow up hopeless leads, the frailty of a detective’s life Why? A Book of Thoughts by Khaled H. Nusseibeh Marwan Asmar review Poetry can be the greatest form of expression bounding on the aesthetic and the beautiful, rich, heartfelt, melancholic and the exhilaration of nuances, powerful expressions and the sense of beyond-earthily universalism. We Wanted Workers: Unraveling the Immigration Narrative by George J. Borjas Charlie Dickinson Review Immigration is certainly the contentious political issue of our time. The electorate of country after country takes the polarity of immigration to the ballot box with disruptive results. In Praise of The Daily Show (The Book) by Chris Smith James Campion review An Oral History of the Golden Age of 21st Century American Satire Call it a difficult night by Mishka Hoosen Published October 2015 by Deep South Abigail George review Mishka Hoosen is young. She is also intelligent. She is brave and she is brilliant. She is also very clever, funny and wise beyond her years... The Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo Orion Children's Books 27.09.16 Six of Crows sequel Sam Hawksmoor review Crooked Kindgom is hugely rewarding and an urgent read. Highly recommended. Bardugo grows in stature as a writer...And The Weak Suffer What They Must? Europe's Crisis and America's Economic Future by Yanis Varoufakis, Charlie Dickenson Vanoufakis deftly argues, the European Union's euro is economically irrational. The common euro currency is a brutal zero-sum arrangement ... The Girl in a Spider's Web by David Lagercrantz, Stieg Larsson (Creator), George Goulding. A misfire for the Lisbeth Salander revival? ICARUS by Deon Meyer A moving portrait of an alcoholic cop in a downward spiral of self-destruction in Cape Town. The Brain’s Way of Healing by Norman Doidge Publisher Penguin Books Ltd Stevellie Wheeler review in this book Dr Doidge recounts the results of treatments by the second generation of practitioners which he calls, “neuroplasticians” The Moral Complexities of Eating Meat (Nyama Choma) by Ben Bramble and Bob Fischer (eds.) 2016 Ronald Elly Wanda If certain arguments generate the conclusion that it is wrong to eat farmed animals, do they also generate the conclusion that it is wrong to eat animals’ period? Heyday: Britain and the Birth of the Modern World Ben Wilson Sam North review Brilliant accessible insight into a pivotal decade in world history Concho by Denzel Holmes Dan Schneider A Texas Western review The Carbon Bubble: What Happens to Us When It Bursts by Jeff Rubin Random House Canada 2015 Steve Wheeler review Oil is history in Canada's future Zoo City by Lauren Beukes Sam Hawksmoor review Pacy, crazy, messy, morally bankrupt and insanely exciting Shout It Out Loud - The Story of KISS’s DESTROYER and the Making of an American Icon by James Campion Backbeat Books Oct 13th 2015 Sam Hawksmoor Review A brilliant forensic insight into the making of KISS and Destroyer Unravelling the Mystery of Two Millennia James Campion I absolutely love The Christos Mosaic, a page-turning masterpiece of a thriller with more than an undertone of controversial reimagining of Biblical history. After Dark by Haruki Murakami Paperback, First Vintage International Edition, 244 pages Sam North review Ever read a book and realised a few paragraphs in that you have already read it? Sneaky publishers are always changing covers these days... Interactive Democracy: The Social Roots of Global Justice by Carol C. Gould Review by Ronald Elly Wanda When we think of ethical problems involving the nature of democracy in Africa, probably none is more paradigmatic than the issue of social justice. The Writer’s Guide To Weapons By Benjamin Sobieck A Practical Reference for Using Firearms and Knives in Fiction - Foreword by David Morrell Review by Leroy B. Vaughn a fact filled book designed to help writers of crime fiction select the proper weapon for their character The Water Knife by Paulo Bacigalupi Orbit Books Sam Hawksmoor review Brilliant, frighteningly real scenario for the doomed 'Sunshine' States. A Chinatown for this generation. Here is the Desert by Dom Gabrielli L’aile editions, 2014 Imene Bennani review 'This secret breathing': The Poetry of Dom Gabrielli Wastelands 2: More stories of The Apocalypse - Edited by John J Adams Sam Hawksmoor review Brilliant bleak, often witty collection of doom What Lies in the Dark by CM Thompson Sam Hawksmoor review A stylish debut crime novel written with supreme confidence as the tension rises with each new horrific murder. The Magician's Land by Lev Grossman Sam North review Satisfying and spirited conclusion to the Magician's trilogy A Modern Masterpiece: The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford - Mike Peters review The Doubt Factory Paulo Bacigalupi Sam Hawksmoor review a modern take on the Patti Hearst story with a really hard message about the drugs you swallow Killing Patton By Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard The Strange Death of World War 11’s Most Audacious General. Leroy Vaughn review When Google Met WikiLeaks: Julian Assange & The Making Of A Live-Long Pattern Alex Sheremet openness and transparency are wonderful things, people forget that these ideas cut in the other direction, as well Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki by Haruki Murakami Murakami has written an uncomfortable book about a simple man trying to make sense of his life Sam North review Life As Art - Ai WeiWei Walli F. Leff at Brooklyn Museum Art-loving tourists from all over the world fan out through the Upper East Side, Chelsea, and Soho to visit Manhattan’s famed museums and galleries... Salt Sugar Fat - How the Food Giants Hooked Us By Michael Moss Steve Wheeler review Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds, the cigarette manufacturers, are now running a large part of the food business, it’s almost too much to believe... The Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick Sam Hawksmoor review ... fascinating, tragic, and utterly compelling. Shimmer by Paula Weston Sam Hawksmoor review Leading on from Shadows and Haze, we have the third book by Paula Weston in what looks to be a saga of angels and demons. A Visit to the Sphinx Walli F. Leff There’s nothing subtle about the redoubtable Kara Walker’s latest art exhibit, a staggering achievement and one of the most provocative shows in New York City this season. Shadow & Bone + Siege and Storm Leigh Bardugo Two books, what a brilliant fantasy duo – that draws on Tolkien, Catherine Fisher, Tolstoy, Russian folktales, but makes it all her own and completely original. This is compulsive reading. Ruin & Rising by Leigh Bardugo The stunning final book in The Grisha Trilogy The Reset Button by Jeff Hunt An America plunged into darkness and illiteracy in a post-apocalypic world by a teenage despot - A Kindle book. Voodoo, Slaves & White Man's Graves by Tom Coote Sam North review If you ever fantasised about flying to West Africa and exploring all its charms - read Voodoo, Slaves and White's Man Graves first. You may well alter your plans. Dog Days by Andrew Thompson Tales From an American Road Trip Truth be told, anyone even thinking about taking a trip around American on a Discovery Pass should read this and hire a car immediately. Tatiana by Martin Cruz Smith Sam Hawksmoor Tatiana is the latest in a long line of Renko novels - the cop that has been beaten up so many times, exposed to radiation and all manner of shootings it's practically a crime he's still alive ... The New American Road Trip Mixtape by Brendan Leonard John M. Edwards review Brendan Leonard lives in a van. Even though Brendan has never left the United States, the brave native Iowan has climbed most of the big peaks in the Western United States The Gardener From Ochakov by Andrey Kurkov, translation by Amanda L Darragh- Charlie Dickinson review Given my satisfaction with his earlier work, I pre-ordered Ukrainian novelist Andrey Kurkov's latest in English translation. I was not disappointed. Alice Munro’s 'Face' Michelle D'costa review It is a story from which you cannot even take your eyes off for a second The Station: Athos: Treasure and Men John M. Edwards Robert Byron’s “The Road to Oxiana” was a smashing success, but was his other great book on The Great Game, the severely neglected “lost” classic “The Station,” in some ways even better? The Invisible Woman: The story of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens by Claire Tomalin Penguin Books, 1991 (new edition 2012)- Chris Mills For many years Nelly Ternan only existed in the shadows, if at all; Claire Tomalin’s research has remedied that situation. Rules of Engagement Sam Hawksmoor on Comparing Adult & Teen Fiction Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse Edited by John Joseph Adams Welcome to the Apocalypse - Roll up to all the doom and gloom you could possibly want Plan D by Simon Urban Sam North review If you are a compulsive reader of Martin Cruz Smith ‘Arcady Renko’ Moscow Detective series Wolves Eat Dogs,  Polar Star etc you are well primed to tackle Simon Urban’s  Detective Martin Wegener, disillusioned East German cop in a ‘Socialist Paradise’ circa 2011. Chilled to the Bone by Quentin Bates CR Crime April 2013 Sam Hawksmoor review This is the third Sergeant Gunnhildur Gisladottir mystery and it begins at a cracking pace and never lets up.  Bowline (at last). Quentin Bates It has been a labour of love, a 25-year labour of love. Many years ago I sat on the schoolbench at navigation college in Iceland, along with a bunch of other aspiring ship’s officers. The Hunting by Sam Hawksmoor Evie Seo review ... fast-paced, thrilling, ambitious and thought-provoking, you'll definitely love this one Toyko Vice by Jake Adelstein Leroy B Vaughn Review Eighty hours a week - there is no such thing as a vacation for reporters and no private life, while working the crime desk. Do Travel Writers Go To Hell? By Thomas Kohnstamm Three Rivers Press (2008), 272 pps John M. Edwards review Thomas Kohnstamm’s sadly neglected criminally negligent book “Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?” does not at all answer the medium-rare question it pretends to propose. The Return of the Late Bruce Chatwin John M. Edwards For the late great Bruce Chatwin life was a journey to be taken on two legs. Obsessed with nomads, he periodically became one himself, ditching two successful careers The Repercussions of Tomas D Q & A An interview with Sam Hawksmoor on the launch of his new YA novel set during the Blitz. Hawksmoor is a vivid writer of compelling details and action. CD The Longest Way Home : One Man’s Quest for the Courage to Settle Down by Andrew McCarthy John M Edwards review "Often, the farther afield I go, the more at home I feel.” The Obsidian Mirror by Catherine Fisher Sam Hawksmoor Catherine Fisher specialises in complex dark, crowded stories with many twists, turns and betrayals.  Dominion by C J Sansom Mantle Hardback Oct 2012 Vs The Afrika Reich  - Guy Saville In 1952 Germany rules all. Which side would you be on? Rebel Heart by Moira Young Scholastic Sam Hawksmoor review This is the sequel to Blood Red Road and it was always going to be a hard act to follow. Saba is haunted by all those she has killed... The Almond Tree by Michelle Cohen Corasanti Garnet Publishing Published: September 2012 Sam North Review Reading Michelle Cohen Corasanti’s first novel one is immediately conscious that this is must surely be non-fiction.  The details are so personal, so harrowing, yet so full of hope and triumph over evil, you desperately want it to be real. 50 Shades of Grey James Morford Review As I read E.L. James’ novel it seemed vaguely familiar. It wasn’t the genre, erotica. Nothing vague about that. Just about everyone has read erotica one time or the other. A Land Without Jasmine by Wajdi Al-Ahdal Published by Garnet Sam Hawksmoor review I have hesitated to write a review of 'A land without Jasmine', not because I didn’t enjoy this beautifully written novella but because it has a lasting haunting effect that is hard to shake off Tearing Up the Silk Road by Tom Coote Publisher: Garnet Publishing Sam North review Tom Coote set himself a target of going the whole distance of the ancient Silk Road by public transport in just nine weeks... one needs determination and fortitude and a very strong stomach - and that's just for the many scary toilets experienced on the way.

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